


Best Friends Since Forever

by danrdarrenc



Category: Days of Our Lives
Genre: M/M, Not polyamory
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-15
Updated: 2018-04-15
Packaged: 2019-04-23 02:01:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,966
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14322084
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/danrdarrenc/pseuds/danrdarrenc
Summary: Will, Paul, and Sonny are three best friends in their last semester at Salem High. Will and Paul are both on the baseball team. Sonny is their nerdy but lovable friend. What happens when someone realizes they want to be more than friends?





	Best Friends Since Forever

“So. You guys ready for the season to start?” Sonny asked. He was sitting in the Java Cafe in Salem Place with his two best friends, Will Horton and Paul Narita.

They were catching up after the winter holidays, Paul having been off in Japan visiting his late mother’s family, and Will having spent Christmas in Switzerland with his Aunt Carrie, Uncle Austin, and young cousin, Noah. Sonny had stayed in Salem with his parents and three older brothers who had graced Salem with their presences for the first time since they had gone off to college. 

“Ugh. Don’t remind me,” Will moaned, dropping his head onto his arms, which were folded on the table in front of him. 

Paul snorted in amusement. “Will neglected his training over the offseason no matter how many times I bugged him about it.”

Sonny grinned. “What about you?” Sonny asked Paul.

“I’ve been in the gym every day for the last two months. I’ve been practicing my pitching with Dad.  I’m ready.”

“Showoff,” Will mumbled, his face still in his arms.

“What about you, Sonny?” Paul asked, taking a sip of his coffee. “You going to try out for the team this year?” It was the same question Paul had asked Sonny since middle school, when he and Will had first joined the school team.

Sonny laughed nervously. “I don’t think so. I can barely walk without tripping over my own feet.” It was the same answer he gave every year.

Will picked his head up to laugh. “Come on, Son. It’ll be fun. It’s our last year of high school! You don’t have to play. You could be the bat boy or something.”

“You’d be surrounded by a lot of cute boys,” Paul teased. 

_Sonny had come out to them two years ago, during their summer break between Freshman and Sophomore year. Will had admitted he was also gay almost immediately after Sonny’s confession. Paul followed them out of the closet a month later, just before the start of the school year._

_They had been best friends since forever, Will and Paul having grown up together due to John and Marlena being married just before they started elementary school, and Will and Sonny having grown up together due to sharing cousins in JJ and Abigail Deveraux and Aunt Jennifer and Uncle Jack. Will had been Paul and Sonny’s link but they had hit it off immediately and the three of them became inseparable, spending practically every minute of their lives together that was not occupied by school or their families._

_Nothing had changed between them, the three of them being out, except that perhaps they had formed an even tighter bond in solidarity with each other._

At least that had been the case until this past summer, when Sonny had realized he was in love with Will. 

Sonny blushed under Will and Paul’s teasing. “All the same. I think my place is in the stands.”

Will laughed. “Spoilsport.” 

“We should get going if we don’t want to be late for our first class,” Sonny said by way of response.

“Always so serious about school,” Paul said, but followed Sonny’s lead in clearing their table. 

“We don’t all have a full scholarship to Salem University,” Sonny answered, as they walked out of the coffee shop into Salem Place and headed towards Salem High School. 

_Over winter break, Paul had gotten the news that he was being given a full ride to the town’s college.  His grades were excellent but he was to be the star pitcher of the university’s baseball team._

_Will was also granted a scholarship to Salem University, although not a full ride, but significant enough that he couldn’t turn it down.  Although he was to play on the baseball team beside Paul, Will’s scholarship was an academic one and he looked forward to pursuing a career in sports journalism._

Paul had the decency to blush. 

“Sonny, you’re the valedictorian of the class by like twelve points. You’re not going to fail if you miss one class,” Will said, trying to lighten up his friend.

“Still. I’d not rather not miss a class.”

Will shook his head in exasperation at the old, tired argument and they walked the rest of the way to school in silence.

* * *

“I can’t move,” Will said, falling face first onto Sonny’s bed. 

“Practice was that bad?” Sonny peered at Will’s dramatics over the top of the book he was reading. 

“I already hurt everywhere and it’s only been one day,” Will mumbled into the comforter. 

“Where’s Paul?” 

Will turned his head so he could talk and breathe properly. “He’s having dinner with John. Just us tonight.”

“Won’t your mom be wondering where you are?”

“Probably not. Too busy boning EJ or something.”

“Will!”

Will swatted away Sonny’s scandalous objection and crawled up the bed to sit next to Sonny. As soon as he was settled, Will plucked the book out of Sonny’s hands. “Let’s watch a movie.”

“I have homework to finish.”

Will glared at Sonny. “It’s the first day back from break. How much work can you possibly have? Come on, Sonny! We haven’t had a sleepover just the two of us in ages. You pick a movie. I’ll make some popcorn.”

Will grinned at him, leaving Sonny no choice but to concede. “Alright,” Sonny sighed.

Will squeezed Sonny’s leg in his excitement and hopped off the bed to go downstairs to make the promised popcorn. 

Sonny stared after him, willing his heart to stop beating a mile a minute. He was acutely aware that tonight would be the first time since realizing he loved Will that the two of the them would be sleeping over together just the two of them. It would do him no favors to freak out over spending the night with Will without Paul as a buffer. For the last six months, Sonny had made sure to always make plans that included all three of them, staving off plans with just Will if Paul wasn’t available.

“What movie did you pick?” Will asked, coming back into Sonny’s bedroom with a big bowl of popcorn. 

“Star Wars?”

“We’ve seen that like a hundred times.”

“We’ve seen all my movies a hundred times.”

“True. Star Wars is good. You choose which one.” Will resettled himself on Sonny’s bed and immediately began stuffing popcorn into his mouth. 

Sonny’s lips turned up at the corners as he turned away from Will to grab a random Star Wars movie off his shelf and popped the disc into the DVD player. Steeling himself, Sonny crawled onto the bed next to Will, hyper aware that their elbows were touching. 

They watched the movie in comfortable silence for about a half an hour until Will asked, “Are you alright?”

“What?”

“Are you okay? You seem kind of quiet.”

“I’m fine,” Sonny answered, trying not to panic that Will was picking up on his stress. 

“Are you sure? Is this because Paul and I were teasing you about school? Because you know we don’t mean anything by it.”

“I know,” Sonny replied, focusing pointedly on the movie. “What are you doing?” Will had paused the movie.

“I want you to tell me what’s going on with you.”

“Nothing’s wrong,” Sonny repeated adamantly, his panic rising.

“Son, we’re closer than brothers.” Sonny twitched at Will’s words, ‘brothers’ stinging him more than he wanted. “We’ve practically spent every day together since we were born. I know you’re lying. And - why are you so tense?”

Sonny shook his head, unable to speak for his panic. 

“Sonny?” Will asked, his voice soft with concern. 

“I’m - I’m alright,” Sonny stammered, taking a deep breath. “I am kind of tired though. I don’t think I’m up for a sleepover tonight. I’m sorry.” Sonny slid off the bed, putting as much space between himself and Will as possible. 

“I - alright,” Will conceded albeit confused. “I’ll see you tomorrow for coffee, like usual?”

Sonny nodded, not looking at Will, who left without another word. Sonny choked back a sob and curled into bed, his heart aching.

* * *

Sonny took a deep breath before pushing open the doors to the Java Cafe. Will and Paul were already seated at their usual table.

“Hey,” Will said softly when Sonny approached. “Are you feeling better?”

“Yeah. Sorry about last night,” Sonny apologized, accepting the coffee cup Paul was holding out for him.

“Don’t worry about it.”

“Should we head for school?” Paul asked. He didn’t seem confused by Will and Sonny’s exchange so Sonny assumed Will had told him about the night before. 

Will and Sonny both nodded and followed Paul out into Salem Place.

* * *

A little over a month later, the three of them were lounging in Will’s bedroom in Lucas’s apartment, when Paul said suddenly, “Why do none of us have Valentine’s dates?”

“Probably because we’re the only three out gay guys in school?” Will offered, not looking up from the essay he was typing on his laptop. 

Paul glared at him and Sonny grinned in amusement. 

“Well, why don’t we go to the Spot then?”

“The gay bar on the other side of town?” Sonny asked.

“Yeah.”

“We’re not old enough to drink.”

“So what?”

“Yeah, so what?” Will echoed Paul’s question. “I’m game if you are.”

“Come on, Sonny. It’ll be fun,” Paul coaxed. 

“I think I’ll pass.” Sonny squirmed uncomfortably.  He knew he should probably go, try to meet someone to get over Will but somehow he couldn’t bring himself to do it.  “You two have fun.”

“No. Forget it.”

“Really, Paul. Go. I don’t mind. Go or I’m not going to go to your first game next week.”

“That’s it. We’re going,” Will said. Sonny had been at every one of their games since middle school; for him to threaten to not go was a serious matter.

“Just don’t be late for Java tomorrow!” Sonny called after them.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

“This is it?” Will asked. He and Paul were standing in the doorway of the Spot. 

“Expecting something different?” 

“I’m not sure what I expected.” Will shrugged. “I guess I was thinking of it more as a club than a bar. Loud music, bouncers.”

Paul laughed. “Can I buy you a drink?” 

“Sure.” 

“Two virgin Bloody Marys,” Paul ordered as they settled themselves on stools in front of the bar. 

“Are you worried about college?” Will asked randomly.

“A little. Yeah.” After a beat, Paul said, “I’m the star of the team here, but what if I’m not good at the college level?”

Will’s hand found Paul’s on the bar top. “Hey. You’re going to be great.” 

Paul grinned sheepishly. “You really think so?”

“I have been on the other side of your fastball. I know I looked like an idiot trying to swing at it.”

Paul laughed and Will laughed at having made Paul feel better. “Salem University obviously thinks you’re good enough to warrant a full scholarship, P. I don’t think you have anything to worry about.”

“Thanks. What about you? Are you worried about the writing gig?” 

Will fiddled with the napkin in front of him. “A little? I mean I’ve interned at the  _Spectator_  for years but I don’t know if that’s because I’m good or because my aunt owns the paper.”

“I don’t know. I think you’re a pretty good writer. I’ve always found your articles to be particularly compelling.”

“Shut up. You’re just saying that.” Will blushed under Paul’s praise.

They lapsed into silence until Paul asked, “Wanna dance?”

Will made a face.

“Oh. Don’t be like that. No one’s going to care if you dance like a robot.”

Will threw his head back with laughter. “Fine. Let’s go, smartass.” Will hopped off the barstool and held his hand out to Paul.

Paul smirked, took Will’s hand, and followed him onto the dance floor, just as the song turned slow.

“Oh. We don’t have to,” Paul said.

Will searched Paul’s eyes, all trace of a smile gone now. “No. It’s alright. We can dance.”

“You sure?” 

Will nodded and slid his arms around Paul’s waist. Paul accepted the gesture and wrapped his own arms around Will’s neck.

“You know, I’ve never done this with a boy,” Will admitted quietly.

“Me either.” 

“Is this weird?” Will asked.

“Dancing with a boy?”

“Dancing with me.”

“No.”

They stared at each other for a second before they leaned in simultaneously. Their lips met in a soft kiss. At first, it was nothing more than a press of mouth against mouth. Then Paul parted his lips, his tongue pushing against Will’s. Will allowed the access and pulled Paul closer.  Paul went willingly, tightening his grip around Will’s neck, and deepened the kiss.

They stayed locked together until the music changed to a faster pace, breaking them apart. They looked at each other, both flushed from the kiss. After a second, they grinned at each other.

“That was unexpected.”

“But not unwelcome?” Will asked.

“Definitely not unwelcome,” Paul confirmed.

“Walk me home?” 

The walk back to the DiMera mansion was a quiet one. At the door, Paul said, “We should tell Sonny.”

“Maybe we can keep it just between us for now?” Will asked and took Paul’s hand in his. “Until we know if this is going somewhere?”

“Is this going somewhere?”

“Do you want it to?”

“Yeah. Yeah, I do,” Paul said, ducking his head and smiling uncharacteristically shyly.

“Good. Me too.”

“So we keep it quiet for now,” Paul agreed. “On one condition.”

“What’s that?”

“We go on a real date. Tomorrow night?”

Will nodded. “Can I kiss you?”

Paul answered by pulling Will to him and kissing him gently. 

“Goodnight,” Will said when they broke apart.

“Goodnight, Will.”

Will smiled and let himself into the mansion.

* * *

“How was the Spot?” Sonny asked the next morning.

“Surprisingly uneventful,” Will answered. Sonny was fiddling with his coffee cup so he missed the glance Will and Paul exchanged.

“I think we might try going back in a few months…or years,” Paul said. “You were right to bring up that we couldn’t drink. It was pretty boring without alcohol.”

“No dancing?”

“We’re…not really the dancing type,” Will said with a snort of amusement, though he held Paul’s gaze. 

“Let’s just forget the bar thing happened,” Paul said, though he smiled softly at Will. 

Will and Sonny both agreed.

* * *

“This isn’t weird, right?” Will asked Paul. 

They were walking along the pier on the way to Shenanigan’s, the piano bar/restaurant on the far side of town. Paul had picked the place, having heard about it from John and Marlena, suggesting that it was somewhere Sonny wasn’t likely to stumble upon them.

“Us going on a date? Surprisingly, no.”

“Surprisingly?”

Paul laughed. “We’ve been friends forever, Will. I guess - I guess I never considered us being anything more than that.”

“Me either,” Will admitted, stopping outside the restaurant. “But I’m not sorry we are.”

Paul searched Will’s eyes and smiled. “Me either. But it does feel weird not telling Sonny.” 

“I don’t think he’ll have a problem. I think he’ll be happy for us.”

“I want him to be,” Paul replied. “But you know what? No more talk of Sonny tonight. Agreed?”

Will bit his lip, smiled shyly, and nodded, following Paul into the restaurant.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

“I had a really great time tonight, Will.”

“Me too.” 

“You know, last night after I left you, I wondered if it might be hard to transition to being more than friends.”

“And?” Will asked. They were stopped outside Lucas’s apartment, where Will was staying for the night.

“I don’t think it’ll be hard at all,” Paul answered, pulling Will to him by the waist.

Will grinned and willingly accepted Paul’s kiss, soft at first, deepening to something more, Will wrapping his arms around Paul’s shoulders and tangling his fingers in the hair at the base of Paul’s neck.

“I really like kissing you,” Will mumbled against Paul’s lips when they broke apart a little bit for air. 

“I really like kissing you, too,” Paul muttered, his eyes still closed and his forehead pressed against Will’s.

“I should go inside,” Will whispered, after a few minutes of them standing in the doorway, just holding each other.

Paul pressed another chaste kiss to Will’s mouth and then extricated himself. “See you for coffee tomorrow?”

“Dinner too?”

“Come to the townhouse after practice. We can do homework together.”

Will agreed silently, kissed Paul again quickly, and went inside.

* * *

Sonny didn’t see much of Will and Paul for the rest of February. They had baseball practice every afternoon after school, getting ready for their first game against Oakdale High School from the neighboring town, and they were all getting swamped with school work, midterms only a couple weeks away.

They managed to keep their morning coffee dates but Will and Paul were obligated to sit with the baseball team for lunch in the run up to the start of the season.  Sonny was left to have lunch with other friends they’d all grown up with, Gabi Hernandez, Chad DiMera, and Tad Stevens. 

“You okay?” Chad asked. “You haven’t touched your food.”

“Will and Paul went to the Spot last week for Valentine’s Day.”

“Together?” Tad asked, his eyebrows shooting up.

“It wasn’t like that.”

“You sure?”

“Yes. I am,” Sonny said forcefully.

“Why are you still brooding about it then?” Chad asked pointedly.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” 

“We know you’re in love with Will,” Gabi said gently. 

Sonny’s mouth dropped open. “Is it really that obvious?”

The three of them nodded at the same time.

“Shit,” Sonny mumbled. “Do you think Will knows?”

“Will is oblivious to stuff like that,” Gabi replied, squeezing his hand. “But maybe you should tell him.”

“No! I can’t do that.”

“Why not?” T asked. 

“I don’t want to make things awkward between us.”

“How do you know he doesn’t feel the same?” Chad said. 

“Because I do,” Sonny huffed. “I have to go.” Without another word, Sonny picked up his tray and left the cafeteria. 

* * *

“Are you nervous about tomorrow?” Will asked, even as he stretched his neck out to allow Paul more access with his mouth.

They were on Will’s bed in his bedroom at the DiMera mansion, their backs against the headboard, their homework lying abandoned at the foot of the bed. 

“No,” Paul said shortly, peppering Will’s neck with kisses and working his way back up to Will’s mouth.

Will grinned into the kiss, immediately pushing his tongue past Paul’s lips and clawing at the T-shirt on Paul’s back. Paul returned the pressure, swinging his leg over Will’s, straddling him. Will let out a groan, his hips bucking up involuntarily. Paul gasped into Will’s mouth but didn’t break the kiss. Instead, he wrapped his arms around Will’s neck and pulled him closer. Will went willingly, sliding his hands under Paul’s T-shirt and clawing at the bare skin of Paul’s back.

Paul broke away, breathless, but rested their foreheads together. “Wait. Wait.”

“What’s wrong?” Will asked. He looked at Paul, whose wide-blown eyes were surely a mirror image of his own. 

Paul swung himself off of Will’s lap. “I think we’re moving too fast,” Paul said, not looking at Will but instead running his hand over his face.

“Okay.”

“Yeah?”

“Of course,” Will said softly, lacing his fingers with Paul’s on the space of bed between them.  “Do you remember Chad’s fifteenth birthday party when we played Spin the Bottle?”

“You kissed Gabi.”

“You landed on T but he called foul.” 

Paul laughed and nodded. “What made you think of that?”

“You’re the first boy I kissed,” Will admitted quietly.

Paul squeezed his hand. “You were for me too.”

Will looked at Paul. “What about that guy you were hanging out with last summer? Derek, wasn’t it?”

“We never kissed,” Paul said with a shrug. “I don’t even know if he was gay or bi or whatever.”

“I’m glad you were my first kiss,” Will said, his face flushed.

“Me too,” Paul answered in kind, dropping his head onto Will’s shoulder.

* * *

March blew into Salem with bitter cold and a snowstorm threatened to postpone the high school’s first baseball game. But the weather cooperated and students, teachers, and families alike piled onto the bleachers to support their boys on the field.

“Good luck!” Sonny yelled through the fence. He waved at Paul who was warming up on the mound and at Will who was getting settled at shortstop.

Will and Paul both smiled at him and waved back, also waving at their families who were in the stands next to Sonny and his own parents.

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

“You were brilliant out there,” Will told Paul. 

The locker room had cleared out of the rest of the baseball team, their teammates all going their separate ways to celebrate their first win of the season. 

“You weren’t so bad yourself,” Paul said, pulling Will to him by his belt loops.

“I’m not the one who threw twelve strikeouts,” Will responded, smirking.

Paul shook his head in mock exasperation and quieted Will with a kiss. Will smiled into it, draping his arms across Paul’s shoulders. Paul pulled Will through the distance left between them, sliding his arms around Will’s waist.

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

His throat sore from cheering, Sonny hurried through the empty school to the locker rooms to congratulate Will and Paul on their win and to pick them up for their tradition to celebrate a win with ice cream sundaes at the Brady Pub. 

As he slowed outside the locker room, Sonny found it surprisingly quiet. The team must have already left for the night. But Sonny hadn’t seen Will or Paul waiting for him so he assumed they were still inside. 

Sonny pushed the door open ready to call out for his friends, but his words died on his lips. Will and Paul were kissing passionately, Will’s arms around Paul’s neck, and Paul’s arms circling Will’s waist.

Sonny let out a strangled cry, his heart shattering. Will and Paul jumped apart, startled. They both paled at the sight of Sonny standing in the doorway, staring at them.

“Sonny -” Will started but Sonny turned on his heels and sprinted down the hallway and to his car.

* * * * * * * * * * * *

“Shit,” Paul swore, lightly punching a locker.

“Hey. Don’t hurt your hand,” Will said softly, pulling Paul’s hand away from danger. “I’ll go talk to him.”

“He looked really upset, Will.” 

“He was just surprised,” Will assured. Will took Paul’s face in his hands. “It’ll be fine. He’ll be upset for a couple days and then things will go back to normal. Yeah?”

Paul nodded but didn’t look convinced.

“I’ll call you after I talk to Sonny. Okay?”

“Okay.” Paul’s lips turned up a tiny smile.

Will kissed Paul quickly and hurried after Sonny.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Somehow, Sonny managed to drive himself home and clamor his way up the mansion staircase before collapsing on his bed in tears.

There was a knock on his door what seemed like a minute later. “Sonny? Can I come in?” Will asked.

Sonny hiccoughed on a sob, took a deep breath, and sat up to face Will.

“You’ve been crying,” Will said, shocked, and closed the door behind him. “We should have told you. I’m sorry. Paul wanted to but I talked him out of it.”

“How long?” Sonny asked quietly.

“Since Valentine’s. At the bar,” Will answered honestly. 

Sonny looked away but he felt Will sit down on the bed next to him. 

“I really didn’t think this would be such a problem for you,” Will said.

“Then why didn’t you tell me?” Sonny turned angrily to Will.

Taken aback by Sonny’s tone, Will asked, “I don’t know. I guess because at that point it was just one kiss.”

“At that point?” 

“We’re dating now,” Will replied. 

“Oh.” Sonny found it hard to breathe. “And you still decided not to tell me.” Sonny said robotically.

“I’m sorry if you feel like we’ve betrayed you. We didn’t plan this. It just…happened.”

“Please stop talking, Will.” Sonny heard the quake in his voice. 

They sat in uncomfortable silence for a couple minutes. Then Will said, “Tell me what you’re feeling.”

“You don’t want to know.”

“We’ve always been brutally honest with each other. You can tell me what you’re feeling.”

“I love you,” Sonny whispered. He said it so quietly he wasn’t even sure he’d said it aloud.

“What?” 

Sonny swallowed thickly, turned his face to Will, and said, “You want to know what I’m feeling? My heart is fucking broken, Will.”

Will blinked at him, shocked by Sonny’s extreme reaction. He hardly ever swore. “We never meant to hurt you.”

“Well, you did! I can’t breathe it hurts so much.” 

“I don’t understand,” Will said slowly. 

“I’m in love with you, Will!” Sonny blurted out. 

Will shrank back, as if Sonny had struck him across the face. 

Sonny choked back a sob and turned away, burying his face in the pillows. “Please leave, Will.” 

Sonny heard rather than saw Will respect his wishes.

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

“Will? What’s wrong?” Paul asked when Will walked into his bedroom. “I thought you were just going to call.”

“I needed to see you,” Will said, crawling onto the bed next to Paul.

“What happened?”

Will worried his lip, anxious. “It was so bad, Paul.”

Paul draped his arm around Will’s shoulders and pulled him closer. 

“He’s in love with me,” Will whispered.

“What?”

Will looked at Paul. “He’s in love with me. I had no idea. How could I have no idea?” 

“Hey. Hey,” Paul wrapped his other arm around Will so he could hug him properly and kissed his hair. “I didn’t know either. He hid it well.”

“What are we going to do?”

“I don’t know,” Paul answered honestly. “But we’ll figure it out. We’ll give him a few days to cool off and then we’ll talk to him.”

Will nodded against Paul’s chest. “Can I stay with you tonight?” Will asked, looking up at Paul. “I don’t want to be by myself.”

“Of course.”

Will smiled sadly, kicked his shoes off, and curled into Paul’s side. Ten minutes later, they were both asleep atop the covers, both still in their jeans and T-shirts.

* * *

Will and Paul didn’t speak to Sonny for nearly two weeks. He didn’t show up for their daily coffee dates and he avoided them in school, sitting with Gabi, Chad, and Tad for lunch, and choosing seats in their classes on the opposite side of the room; Will and Paul’s afternoons continued to be preoccupied with baseball.

Will and Paul finally cornered Sonny in the Cheatin’ Heart, of all places, one Friday night in the middle of March. He was behind the bar, helping his mother out due to the bartender calling out sick. They had gone there for a night out, not considering that Sonny might be there. 

Biting the bullet, Will and Paul made a beeline for Sonny. 

“Sonny?” Paul asked tentatively. “Can we talk?”

“I’m busy,” Sonny said curtly, turning his back on them.

“Please, Sonny,” Will practically begged. 

Sonny sighed but said to the waitress, “I’m taking a break.” Then he followed them to a booth at the back of the bar behind the pool table.

They sat down, Will and Paul across from Sonny.

“We’re sorry we didn’t tell you,” Will said.

“Oh. So you’re a ‘we’ now?” Sonny mocked. “I assume Will told you what I told him?”

Will flinched.

“Sonny. Tell us how we can make this right,” Paul tried gently, choosing to let Sonny’s question go unanswered. 

Sonny clenched his jaw and looked away. “I don’t know what you want me to say.”

“I want you to say that we haven’t broken our friendship,” Will said quietly.

Sonny looked sharply at Will but said less harshly than expected, “I’m not mad at you. I’m just hurt.”

“We didn’t know,” Paul said.

“Would it have really made a difference?” Sonny asked.

Neither Will nor Paul replied. Sonny blinked back tears, sighed, and rubbed his hand over his face. 

“I don’t want this to be the end of our friendship either,” Sonny said after an uncomfortable minute. “But I just need time. I don’t need you to like it but I need you to respect it.”

Without allowing Will and Paul to respond, Sonny slid out of the booth and walked back behind the bar. 

No more than a minute later, Will and Paul left the bar and went to the Brady Pub instead.

* * *

“Is Coach Sisko pushing us harder this year?” Will asked, collapsing on his bed and stretching his neck, trying to crack it. “I hurt everywhere.”

“It’s almost April. Are you still not used to the stretches and exercising? And general baseball activities?” Paul asked. “Or are you just being dramatic?”

Will stuck his tongue out at his boyfriend. 

“Oh. Nice. Very mature.”

Will grinned. 

“Come on. Lie down on your stomach and take your shirt off.”

Will squinted at him suspiciously but conceded to Paul’s request. “Are you just trying to my clothes off?”

Paul laughed, as he crawled onto the bed and straddled Will’s hips. “No, it’s not,” Paul said into Will’s ear. “Just relax.”

Suddenly, Paul’s hands were on Will’s shoulders, his thumbs tracing circles on Will’s back muscles.

“Nngngngh,” Will breathed out. Paul laughed.

“Feel good?” 

Will nodded against the bed. Paul massaged Will’s back in silence for a few minutes, Will drifting into a light sleep. 

“How are you feeling?” Paul asked, breaking the quiet, peppering Will’s neck with butterfly kisses.

Will’s lips turned up in a slow smile. “Better,” Will said propping himself up low on his elbows and turning his face to capture Paul’s lips with his own. 

Breaking the kiss, Will flipped himself onto his back, so they could get a better angle. Paul smiled down at him and ducked his neck down to kiss Will again, languidly. Will’s arms circled Paul’s waist as the kiss deepened, Paul’s tongue in his mouth and his fingers in Will’s hair. 

As the pressure and intensity of the kiss increased, Will scratched at Paul’s back and clawed at Paul’s shirt, working haphazardly to shed him of the material. Paul broke the kiss, and searched Will’s eyes. 

The air in the room had changed, suddenly charged with electricity and a heat that hadn’t been there when they’d first come in. 

Will’s hands stilled on Paul’s back. Staring up at Paul, his eyes blown wide with lust and his lips swollen and red from kissing, Will couldn’t help but feel the swell in his chest. “I want to,” Will said. “But only if you do too.”

Paul kissed Will again, hard and sloppy and fast. “I want to,” Paul said on a breath. 

Will arched up into Paul, sliding his hands under Paul’s shirt to push it off. They broke the kiss only to shed Paul’s shirt and the rest of their clothes.

* * * * * * * * * * * *

“You okay?” Paul asked. Will was curled into his side, tracing circles on Paul’s chest.

“More than okay,” Will said with a soft smile. “You?” 

Paul nodded against the top of Will’s head and kissed Will’s hair. 

“I love you,” Will mumbled, drifting off to sleep.

“I love you, too.”

* * *

Will was sitting on the white couch in the newly renovated Horton Town Square reading a book when Sonny sat down next to him. It was the beginning of April and they were on Spring Break from school. 

“Hi,” Will said cautiously.

“Hey,” Sonny answered and gave Will a small smile.

“How are you?”

Sonny looked away from Will and fiddled with a loose string on his jacket. “It still hurts, Will. For a lot of reasons. But I miss you, Will.” Sonny turned back to Will. “You and Paul.”

Will scooted as close to Sonny as he dared. “I miss you, too, Son. So does Paul. It’s great, the two of us, but it’s not the same as having you around too.” 

“Chad and Gabi and T are fun to hang out with but it’s different, y’know? They’re my friends but they’re not my  _best_ friends. I want my best friends back.”

Will lips turned up in a smile. “We can take it slow if you need to,” Will offered.

“Can you promise me one thing?”

“Anything.”

“Could you maybe keep your PDA to a minimum around me? At least for now?”

“Absolutely,” Will promised. 

Sonny nodded his thanks and then asked, “So, are you busy?”

“No. I’m meeting Paul later for dinner with John and Marlena but I’m free for the day.”

“You, uh, you maybe want to get some lunch at the Pub? I think we have a lot to catch up on.”

“I’d love to,” Will said, and followed Sonny out of the Square.

* * *

The first time the three of them hung out together again was awkward for all of them. Will and Paul were exceptionally careful about not touching each other and Sonny was clearly still in some slight distress.

It was still too cold to do any extended activities outside so they opted to go bowling at the alley in Salem Place. Over pizza, french fries, strikes, and spares, Will, Sonny, and Paul began the slow task of rebuilding their friendship. 

“Do you remember that time in fourth grade when we went bowling with our class?” Sonny asked, dipping three fries into honey mustard. 

Will and Paul both nodded, mouths too full of pizza to talk. 

“Paul kept throwing gutter balls,” Sonny said, grinning evilly. “Couldn’t get his aim right.”

“And somehow he became the star pitcher of the baseball team,” Will deadpanned. 

Paul glared at both of them, but his lips twitched. 

“How  _did_  that happen?” Sonny countered, his grin stretching even more across his face.

“I don’t know. I don’t know,” Will said, playing along.

“You know what?” Paul said in mock anger. “I can see today is take the piss out of Paul day. That’s fine. I can take it.”

Will and Sonny both threw their heads back with laughter. It almost felt like things were back to normal. 

* * *

“Sonny, can I ask you something personal? You don’t have to answer.” 

Paul and Sonny were sitting at a table in the Kiriakis garden enjoying the first warm afternoon of the season. It was a rare day off from baseball and Will was spending the day with his parents and his brother and sisters. 

“Sure.”

“How long have you been in love with Will?”

Sonny looked up from his book to stare at Paul. “Does it bother you?”

“No. I’m just curious.” 

Paul’s look was so earnest Sonny had no reason to believe he was lying. 

“Do you remember that makeshift camping trip we had at the lake last summer?” 

Paul nodded. 

“Will was pointing out all those constellations he learned from his trip to the planetarium with Sydney and the twins. His face was alight with excitement.” Sonny smiled to himself, dazing off into the garden, almost forgetting that Paul was there. “We couldn’t really follow what he was talking about it, he was talking so fast. But his eyes were shining and I don’t think I’d ever seen him so passionate about something, even baseball or writing. I looked at him and I just…felt something shift in me. That was when I knew.” 

“I’m sorry,” Paul said quietly. 

Sonny pulled himself out of his reverie and looked back to Paul. “I don’t need you to be sorry, Paul. It’s not anyone’s fault.” 

“But we hurt you.”

“No. I mean, yes. But you didn’t do it on purpose. You fell in love with Will same as I did. And Will fell in love with you,” Sonny said, the words hurting his heart a lot less than they would have two months before. “Will never saw me like that. That’s all there is to it.”

“Someone will love you, Sonny,” Paul said, grabbing Sonny’s hand on top of the table. “I promise. You have too big a heart for it not to be shared.”

* * *

“Have you heard from any of your colleges yet?” Will asked Sonny. 

The three of them were lounging on the couch in Horton Town Square, nursing coffees and sharing muffins and breakfast croissants. They were enjoying the nice almost mid-April weather and their last day of Spring Break before they returned to the push towards finals and graduation.

“You should be hearing soon, no?” Paul added.

Sonny tore off a piece of croissant, stalling answer the question. “I have, yeah.”

“And?” 

When Sonny looked up from the food, Will and Paul were smiling at him excitedly. 

“I got into a few but I’m turning them all down.”

“What?” Will and Paul asked simultaneously. 

“I’ve been doing a lot of thinking the last couple months. I think I need some space from Salem for a little bit.”

Will’s smile faded and Paul’s brow furrowed. “Because of us?” Will asked, stung.

Sonny shook his head. “Yes. No. A lot of things. The truth is really that I’ve been getting a bit of wanderlust. There’s a whole world out there. I want to see it.”

“How long will you be gone?” Paul questioned.

“I’m going to defer Salem U for a year, go to Europe, Asia, maybe. I might even try climbing a mountain or two.”

“So a year, then?”

“That’s the plan right now. But if I like it? I don’t know. That plan might change.”

“When will you leave?” Will asked, sadness clouding his face.

“Right after graduation.”

“So soon?” Paul’s face was sad too.

“If I don’t go soon, I’ll never go. And this is something I need to do.”

Will and Paul nodded their understanding. 

* * *

As April barreled into May, Will, Sonny, and Paul continued rebuilding their friendship. They returned to spending as much time as possible together but they also set ground rules, allowing Will and Paul time to spend alone without Sonny, and allowing Sonny to spend time with Will and Paul individually. 

Slowly, Will and Paul integrated displays of affection into their time with Sonny. To his credit, Sonny handled it gracefully; the shaky new foundation of their friendship didn’t seem to suffer for it.

“Let’s go to the lake,” Paul suggested, one Saturday morning early in May. “The weather’s beautiful today.”

“Alright,” Sonny agreed and followed Will out of the townhouse so they could get their stuff.

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

“This was a good suggestion,” Will said. He and Paul were lounging on a shared beach towel, their legs intertwined. Sonny was on his own towel, next to them. 

Will tipped his head back onto Paul’s shoulder, turning his face up to the sun. “The warmth feels so good.”

“Mmm,” Sonny agreed, folding up a towel to use as a pillow. He had just laid down when a beach ball bounced onto his legs. 

“Sorry!” a voice called. A second later, a boy a year or two older than them appeared. “My little sister hit the ball a little too hard and the wind just carried it.”

“No problem,” Sonny said, handing the ball back to the guy, who took the ball but didn’t move.

“My name’s Brian, by the way.” He held out his free hand to Sonny.

Sonny shook his hand. “Sonny.”

“Nice to meet you, Sonny.”

“You too.”

After a beat, Brian said, “I, uh, I should get back.”

When Sonny didn’t say anything, Brian left.

“Sonny,” Will said. 

“What?”

“Do you really have to ask that?” Paul said with a laugh. 

“What?”

“He was flirting with you!” Will clarified.

“No. No. No, he wasn’t,” Sonny babbled, his face heating up.

“He was,” Paul confirmed. “You should go talk to him.”

“I don’t think so.”

“Why not?”

“Because.”

“Because why?” Paul pushed. 

“Go talk to him,” Will nudged gently.

Sonny stared at Will and Paul. After a minute, Sonny conceded. “Fine. I’ll go talk to him.”

Grinning, Will and Paul watched him go. When he was out of sight and earshot, Paul turned to Will. 

“Good. He’s gone. Now I can do what I’ve been wanting to do all morning.”

“What’s that?” Will questioned, even though he knew the answer.

Paul grinned mischievously and captured Will’s lips in a kiss, pulling Will on top of him, Will relaxing into the kiss and embrace.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

“This was a really fun day,” Sonny said. They were sitting at a table in Horton Town Square, eating ice cream.

“Sure it was. You got a date with a cute boy,” Paul said, grinning as he spooned ice cream into his mouth.

Sonny glared at him, but his lips were stretched in a small smile.

“It’s really great, Sonny,” Will said. “Even if you’re leaving in a month, I’m glad you’re putting yourself out there.” 

Sonny’s smile faded and he stirred the ice cream that had melted in his cup, not looking at Will and Paul. “It’s a lot easier than it used to be. I figure I might as well take that next step.”

“Good for you,” Will said, taking Sonny’s hand in his briefly. He hoped he wasn’t pushing his luck and crossing a line but it was a good sign that Sonny didn’t flinch away. 

Breaking the somewhat tense air that had settled over their table, Paul said, “Dad and Marlena are in Chicago for the night. You want to come back to mine and watch the Cubs game or maybe watch a movie?”

“Who says we can’t do both?” Sonny suggested, freeing his hand from Will’s. 

Paul smiled and followed Will and Paul out of the Square.

* * *

As May flew by, their time together changed from leisurely pursuits to stressed out cramming sessions for school, sharing notes and quizzing each other for last minute tests before finals.  Whatever other time they had was spent with Will and Paul on the baseball field and Sonny cheering them on. 

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

“How’s it going with Brian?” Will asked from a lounge chair on the edge of the DiMera pool. Sonny was lounging on a raft in the water. Paul was inside making sandwiches.

They were taking time out from baseball and studying to relax at the behest of their parents.

“It’s not.”

“Oh no. Really?” 

“He was too full of himself. Boasting about being first in his class in his pre-med program. I don’t know. He irritated me.”

“Were you just not trying?” 

“I tried, Will. Really. I did,” Sonny insisted. “Maybe I’ll meet someone during my travels. Some fancy French artist or some hot Spanish flamenco dancer.”

Will shook with laughter. 

“So you’re really going?” Paul asked, picking up on their conversation. 

“Yeah.”

“You know we’re going to miss you, right?” Will said.

“I’m going to miss you, too,” Sonny admitted, climbing out of the pool and settling at the foot of Will’s lounge chair, joining Will and Paul’s picnic of sandwiches and lemonade.

* * *

Summer, the end of the high school baseball season, and finals converged on Will, Sonny, and Paul’s lives in the middle of June. 

“We’re free,” Sonny said, collapsing on Will’s bed. 

“Don’t say that to Paul. He’s still got a final tomorrow.”

“Sucks for him.”

Will muffled his laughter in a pillow. “Wanna watch a movie while he suffers with studying?”

Sonny grinned at him and crawled up the bed to sit next to Will. “Let’s watch The Breakfast Club. We haven’t watched that in ages.”

“Okay.” Will climbed off the bed to retrieve the DVD from his shelf. “Want popcorn?”

“Nah.” 

Will shrugged and climbed back onto the bed, popping the movie into his laptop, which he propped on a pillow in the space between their legs. 

Almost immediately, Sonny dropped his head onto Will’s shoulder. Happily surprised, Will smiled and dropped his own head on top of Sonny’s. 

They watched the movie in comfortable silence, falling asleep midway through, their heads still nestled against each other.

* * *

“Are you sad the season’s over?” Will asked, tracing circles on Paul’s bare chest.

Paul skimmed his fingers up and down Will’s arm. “Yeah. But I’ve got the college team to look forward to.”

Will smiled. 

“You’ll come to the games, right?”

Will shifted his head on the pillow so he could look at Paul. “Of course! Why wouldn’t I?”

“I don’t know.”

Will propped himself on his elbow. “Hey. Talk to me.”

“College is hard on high school relationships,” Paul said, staring at the ceiling.

“And you think that’s going to happen to us?”

Paul turned his face to Will. “It could.”

“It won’t.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“For one thing? We’re going to the same school and we’re still living in the same town.” Will smiled a little. “For another, we love each other.”

Paul smiled at that. “We do.”

Will’s smile stretched across his face and he bent down to kiss Paul. After a minute, Will broke away.

“I have an idea.”

“Always dangerous,” Paul teased.

Will stuck his tongue out at his boyfriend. Then he said, “Why don’t we dorm together?”

Paul blinked at him and sat up, turning his body towards Will. “I wasn’t planning on living on campus.”

“I know. Neither was I. But I think we should. Together. That way we can ensure that we’ll be able to see each other. Even if we can’t make time for each other during the day - which I hope we do - we can be sure to see each other at night.”

“We should make a plan to make time for us anyway. Like lunch on Fridays no matter what.”

“Anyway?” Will asked hopefully. “Are you saying yes to us living together?”

“Yes. Yes. I’m saying yes,” Paul confirmed with a grin.

Will’s face lit up with bliss and he launched himself at Paul. Paul laughed and caught Will, falling back onto the pillows with Will on top of him.

“I love you,” Paul said, blinking up at Will.

“I love you, too,” Will replied, ending the conversation with his mouth on Paul’s.

* * *

“I can’t believe we graduate high school tomorrow,” Sonny said. 

They three of them were sitting on the beach on the edge of the lake. It was the middle of June and they were enjoying the beautiful weather, celebrating the end of the school year and the baseball season.

“Do you remember how scared we were to start?” Will asked.

“And we all promised that no matter what we’d stick together,” Paul added.

“And we did,” Sonny said, smiling broadly at his two best friends. 

Things between them had gone back to normal, Will and Paul loosening up around Sonny, and Sonny seemingly free of the greater part of his love for Will. Now they were closer than ever.

“I wish you were coming to school with us,” Paul admitted.

“I know. I do want to,” Sonny said. “But I need this gap year. Otherwise I’ll be restless.”

“Come back to us, Sonny,” Will said.

“I will. I promise.”

* * *

“You can still stay, y’know,” Will said. 

He and Paul were standing with Sonny outside the gate of Sonny’s plane at the Salem Airport. Justin and Adrienne had wanted to take Sonny to the airport but Sonny had insisted on Will and Paul driving him. 

Sonny smiled a little sadly. “I’ll email you and send you pictures as much as I can. And we can FaceTime whenever I get the chance.”

Will nodded, blinking away tears, and pulled Sonny into a tight hug. Sonny returned the embrace, equally tight.

“Don’t forget us, okay?” Paul said when Will and Sonny had broken apart.

“Never.”

Paul also pulled Sonny into a bear hug. 

“I should go,” Sonny whispered, extricating himself from Paul. “I’ll be in touch as soon as I can.”

Will and Paul moved to stand with each other, supporting each other as they waved goodbye to their best friend. 


End file.
